Design of Fe/Ni-doped N/S-rich carbon with advanced bifunctional electrocatalysis for Zn–air batteries

Abstract

Bifunctional electrocatalysts for both the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) have attracted broad attention due to the widespread implementation of rechargeable zinc–air batteries (ZABs). Herein, we fabricate a Fe/Ni-doped N/S-rich carbon material and test it as an efficient electrocatalyst for both ORR and OER processes. Benefiting from the well-dispersed metal sites on the N/S-rich framework, the material exhibits good electrocatalytic performance with a half-wave potential of 0.82 V. When applied as a cathode electrocatalyst in a home-made zinc–air battery, it displays a higher power density (256 mW cm⁻²) and a larger specific capacity (740 mA h g⁻¹) in comparison to Pt/C. This study demonstrates the design of an efficient bifunctional electrocatalyst for the ORR and OER, which could provide some insight into the development of noble-metal-free bifunctional catalysts for advanced energy conversion.